July in Belgium...the time of year when we celebrate the end of school, farewell to friends who are moving on to other assignments, and a "See you in August" to those heading home for the summer. Brussels is a bit of a ghost town this time of year, and I LOVE it. In fact, I'm not sure why people leave?? The weather is really pretty good and the traffic is bearable.
So, to start off, Kim is leaving us for Tokyo. This is one of those situations where we have no idea when they might see each other again. But, they have such a special friendship. I have no doubt they will see one another in the future.
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| His little sis is going to marry Thomas, so we'll see him at the wedding for sure. :) |
Karin was all for celebrating the end of the BSB school year which was a week later than ISB. Cheers to no more homework!
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She is going to kill me.
This was the night we told them we were moving. Needless to say, no one was in much of a celebratory mood when that ball was dropped. |
The 4th of July!
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| The Smiths and Vastines |
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| Marshmallow mouth |
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| This is about as American as we got all day. Hey, at least we tried. |
I made reservations for a kayak trip for July 5th. Two days prior, the weather forecast looked promising, so I went for it. And, we lucked out! Fabulous weather for kayaking down the Lesse River.
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| This girl is great at kayaking. |
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| Jenna and the boys |
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| Kristina and Michelle |
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| Torben, Stephanie, and Pluto (who would spontaneously leave his canoe) |
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| Gorgeous views along the way! |
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| Very strenuous kayaking I tell ya...... |
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| Lunch break! |
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Group pic!
Really awesome friends! Love them! |
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| Oh right...just a castle along the way. No biggie. Hahahaha! |
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| Well done P fam! |
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Q was a lone wolf. But, he did just fine in that single man kayak.
Well, I thought I had pics of everyone, but it turns out I am missing a pic of Jamie and Zoe! Shoot! |
Leuven...we've been 50 times, and we'll try to squeeze it in 50 more!
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| Burritos at Donki |
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| My new favorite store!! Thank you to the Dutch for this fabulous shop! |
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| Europe and my girl...a perfect combination! |
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| Time for a summer hair do! She has fab hair. Lucky thing! |
I am famous for dragging the kids out of the house to find new things. Today, we found the Église Notre-Dame de Laeken. The Belgian royal family is buried in the crypts of this church. No offense to them, but we were looking for something else.
This wins for the creepiest cemetery I have ever visited.
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| Really happy it was daytime! |
But, the statues on the graves are absolutely magnificent...and heart-wrenching. You can feel their pain, loss, and sorrow.
This is why we really came....
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| There is an original bronze cast of Rodin's "The Thinker" in this cemetery! |
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| Pensive |
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| What is he doing here? He is actually a tombstone for a grave! |
This place looks like it should be used for The Haunted Mansion at Disney.
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| One side of the cemetery has extensive renovation happening I hope they don't do too much. It would be a shame to take away all of the creepy! |
The cathedral is quite gorgeous! I really should stop for a look inside sometime.
Next stop was The Atomium and a movie. It was a very productive day!
Next up! The highlight of the summer...our Baltic cruise!!!
Until next time,
Wendy
Oh I loved this tour! Thanks so much.
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